


The Flowers of Truth

by BoldlyGoingNowhereFast



Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Another Away Mission Gone Wrong, Drugged Confessions, Exasperated Bones, Humor, M/M, Smut, Strange Alien Flowers, The Pollen is Truth Serum
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-22
Updated: 2014-07-22
Packaged: 2018-02-09 23:32:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2002293
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BoldlyGoingNowhereFast/pseuds/BoldlyGoingNowhereFast
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Jim stumbles into a patch of strange flowers on an away mission, he finds himself spouting out things he would rather Spock not hear.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Flowers of Truth

**Author's Note:**

> This story takes place after Into Darkness, a few months into their Five Year Mission.

Jim Kirk, captain of the starship _Enterprise_ , was sure-footed and content with who he was, having come to terms with his skill as a captain and the trust his crew placed in him. He didn’t shy away from his feelings, and he never had the time to second-guess his command decisions, especially considering the urgency of most of their missions. It was imperative that he was seen as a strong leader that wouldn’t back away from tough situations.

There was only one person he knew who was able to put any doubt in his mind, and that person was his science officer and half-Vulcan friend. Upon first discovering that he was attracted to his first officer, Jim’s mind was thrown through a loop and couldn’t help but harp on the time when said first officer had stranded him on an arctic planet and nearly choked him out, all on the first day of serving together. It was when their relationship was still rocky, but slowly smoothing out that Jim realized his attraction for the severe Vulcan, and it had worried him greatly. Spock had a beautiful girlfriend and didn’t even like him that much, so Jim was sure it was masochistic to allow his feelings to grow.

Since that moment he had been successful in keeping a cap on his emotions, brutally tamping them down whenever the draw he felt towards Spock swelled. Yes, the Vulcan was attractive and killer smart, but against popular belief, Jim was in control of his libido.  

The attack on the _Enterprise_ by Khan, and the moment they shared through the glass of the warp core had completely ruined Jim’s control over his feelings. Knowing that Spock also felt strongly about him, even if those feelings were platonic in nature, had done him in. Waking up in that dreadful hospital room with Spock standing there waiting for him, and hearing all that Spock had done in order to avenge him had changed the situation for good. Jim’s attraction could no longer be called just that.

And so they started their five year mission aboard the _Enterprise_ , and Jim had to wonder exactly how he would survive all that time in space with a massive crush on his unobtainable first officer. It didn’t help that a few weeks after they set out, everyone realized that Spock and Uhura were no longer an item, and suddenly Spock was single and much less unobtainable than before. But Jim was the captain and had to act like one. Putting the moves on his first officer would not be a good idea, no matter how often his dreams were filled with those pointy ears.

All of these thoughts going through his head were probably the reason Jim didn’t notice the strange patch of flowers until he was knee-deep in them, and the puff of oddly-colored pollen that obscured his vision pulled him roughly back into the present and the mission that they were currently on.

Jim coughed painfully and felt his eyes begin to water. “What the hell?” he rasped and watched as both Bones and Spock turned from what they were doing.

Jim quickly stepped out of the flowers and fanned the air in an attempt to rid his breathing of pollen.

“Captain, we are unfamiliar with the plant life on this planet. It is imperative that we keep out of it in case of unknown dangers,” Spock stated as he clutched his tricorder.

“In other words, Jim, you’re an idiot,” Bones added, shaking his head.

Jim opened his mouth to reply sarcastically, but ended up coughing instead. It would be just his luck if he ended up being allergic to the stupid pollen.

“Captain, are you alright?” Spock asked, taking a step closer to Jim with his slanted brows furrowed slightly.

“I’m fine,” Jim rasped. “This stupid stuff is just irritating my throat, that’s all.” He brushed the blue tinted dust off of the front of his gold shirt and frowned. “I didn’t mean to step in the plants, if that’s what you think.” In truth, Jim hadn’t been paying attention to his surroundings at all. The planet was beautiful, and the breeze that played at their hair and clothing felt good. There was no animal life bigger than a squirrel, and the trees and grass added together to make this place more of a paradise than a scientific venture. Perhaps that was why Jim’s mind had wandered during their exploration of the surface.

Bones shook his head and turned away to continue scanning the soil, but Spock’s gaze remained on his face.

“Spock, I’m fine,” Jim repeated with a small grin on his face. He moved away from the patch of flowers and continued where he left off, only slightly surprised when Spock fell into step with him.

“I thought you were scanning the plant life?” Jim asked, looking sideways at the Vulcan next to him. Jim wiped at the sweat that had formed on his forehead with the back of his sleeve and frowned lightly.

“I have finished that endeavor,” Spock responded, and when he glanced at Kirk his brows knit together again. “Captain, your cheeks are flushed, and you seem to be sweating though the temperature is well within human comfort levels.”

Jim stopped walking. “My face feels kind of itchy, actually.”

Spock stopped beside him. “You must be experiencing a reaction to the pollen you inhaled. You must report to Doctor McCoy.”

Jim felt his vision go fuzzy at the corners and suddenly didn’t _feel_ like reporting to Bones. In fact, he was content to stay right here with Spock in the pretty forest with the green trees and light breeze. Jim frowned at the thought of sharing Spock with anyone else, even his CMO.

“Captain?”

Jim grinned at his first officer. “I feel great, Spock! I feel awesome!” He spread out his arms and spun once on the spot. “Let’s stay here a bit. This place is wonderful.”

Spock eyed him doubtfully. “You must allow Doctor McCoy to examine you for possible negative effects of the pollen. Your wellbeing is in danger.”

Jim was about to respond to that when he made eye contact with the Vulcan, and he had an overwhelming urge to let Spock know what he was thinking. “You know, most people don’t notice it because they’re too busy looking at your eyebrows or your ears, but you have very pretty eyes, Spock.”

Spock stared at him, speechless. “Humor, Captain?”

Jim’s eyes widened and his smile faded. “No, Spock. Why would I tease you like that? I’m complimenting you because I like you!”

Something was wrong, but Jim was too busy smiling and staring at the Vulcan in front of him to worry too long about it. After all, it wasn’t very often he felt this happy and content with his surroundings, and Jim intended to bask in this strange, floating feeling that had soaked through him.

Without breaking eye contact with Kirk, Spock pulled out his communicator. “Spock to Doctor McCoy.”

_“McCoy here. What is it, Spock?”_

“The Captain seems to be having an adverse reaction to the pollen.”

_“What’s wrong with him?”_

Spock was silent for a moment. “He complemented my eyes and is now petting my hair.”

Jim _liked_ Spock’s hair. It was so silky and soft, and Jim liked the way Spock’s brows furrowed as he tried to find a logical reason for Jim’s actions. Spock was _cute._

_“For the love of… I’m on my way.”_

Spock closed the communicator and hooked it back onto his belt.

“Captain, it would be best if you stayed exactly where you are. Your actions are obviously not entirely your own.”

“As long as you’re here, Spock, I’m happy.”

Spock raised an eyebrow but didn’t reply.

“I like it when you do that,” Jim stated with a swell of affection.

“To what are you referring?”

“The eyebrow lift! You don’t like to show emotion, right? Well, the little eyebrow thing is totally your way of letting a little emotion slip.”

“There is no reason to insult me, Captain,” Spock replied, crossing his arms.

“Aw, Spock, you know I’m not insulting you. I don’t like insulting you.” Jim frowned. Spock had to know how Jim felt about him. It seemed imperative that Spock know.

“Alright, Jim, let’s see what the damage is,” Bones drawled as he stepped between Spock and Jim with his scanner held out towards Kirk. “Why is it that there’s always something? Can’t we have one mission where everything turns out peachy?”

Jim frowned, his chance to tell Spock what he felt having been interrupted. And he didn’t like that Bones was now standing closer to Spock than Jim was.

“Peachy, Doctor?”

“It means ‘fine.’ As in, nobody breathes in weird pollen or gets bitten by the wildlife or sucked into an alternate universe.”

“Your language is highly illogical,” Spock concluded.

Bones shook his head with a frustrated sigh but didn’t respond as he took the readings off of the scanner. “It seems the pollen has affected Jim’s frontal lobe. His inhibitions have been majorly lowered, and his state of mind has been altered. The pollen is acting a bit like nitrous oxide and a truth serum combined would.”

Both McCoy and Spock were now gazing at Jim curiously.

“Do you know if you can reverse the effects, Doctor?” Spock asked with a tilt of his head.

“I can’t do it on this wild planet, that’s for sure. We need to get him back on the ship and into the sickbay.”

Jim was feeling very dizzy, and the world quickly started tilting around him. He was aware of the severe shift of gravity, and then a pair of arms gently lowering him to the ground.

“Captain, are you okay? Jim?”

Kirk squinted up at Spock’s slightly worried expression. Spock’s arm was still around his shoulders as he crouched over Jim. “Everything’s moving too fast.”    

Bones crouched down next to him. “This looks like an allergic reaction.” Bones quickly flipped open his communicator. “McCoy to _Enterprise_.”

_“Scotty here.”_

“We need to beam back up. Jim needs urgent medical attention.”

There was a pause on the other end of the line. _“We have a wee problem, actually.”_

After that, Jim had trouble concentrating on the order of events. He was pretty sure there was some reason they couldn’t be beamed back up to the _Enterprise_ , but that didn’t seem important with Spock’s face so close to his own and his arms still around Jim. He was aware of Bones sticking a hypo in his neck and of his continual cursing, but it was a background blur of activity to Jim’s muddled line of thoughts. At some point, Spock had pulled Jim over his lap and sat down on the ground, which was even better, in Jim’s opinion.

Jim squinted up at the Vulcan. “Spock?”

“Yes, Captain?”

“You do know I like you, right?”

There was a short stretch of silence. “Yes, Jim, I am aware.”

“But do you know how much I like you?” Jim squeezed Spock’s arm for emphasis.

That earned Jim an eyebrow lift. “I was not aware a quantity was needed.”

Jim sighed contentedly. “I love the way you talk. It’s so endearing.”

Another eyebrow lift. This was beginning to seem like a game where the number of points earned was the number of times Spock lifted one eyebrow. Jim wondered if he could get Spock to raise _both_ eyebrows. “Captain, you would not be saying any of this were you not drugged.”

Jim reached up and brushed a finger over a pointed ear, amazed when a light green flush spread across Spock’s cheekbones. “What are you doing, Captain?”

“I like your ears. And your eyebrows.” He brushed his finger over Spock’s right eyebrow, and the Vulcan quickly grabbed his wrist to prevent any further touching.

Bones and Spock exchanged a few tense words, but Jim was too busy focusing on the green tinge that still colored Spock’s cheeks. He had brought that out, and it was amazing.

Bones kneeled down beside Spock and Jim. “Hey, Jimmy, it might be best if you don’t speak and keep your hands to yourself.” Bones sighed. “You don’t want to do anything embarrassing you’ll regret later.”

Turning his head to look at McCoy sent the world spinning again, and he had to blink a few times for the doctor’s face to come into focus. “But, Bones, it’s not embarrassing to be in love with Spock. It hurts sometimes, but it’s not embarrassing.”

A thick silence followed this statement. “That’s exactly what I’m talking about, Jim.” Bones stood and moved out of Jim’s line of vision, but Jim could hear a choice few curses coming from his direction as he continued to speak with Scotty over the communicator.

Spock was staring down at him, his expression resembling the one he always wore when something unexplainable had happened. It was usually followed by his favorite non-four-letter f-word, but it seemed Spock had been stunned into silence.

“Jim, it would be best if you refrained from speaking further,” Spock told him softly.

“I like when you say my name.” Jim frowned. “You don’t say it very often, and when you do I know it means something. I like your voice, Spock.”

“Captain, you are compromised.”

“Did you know, the first time I saw you, even though you were accusing me of cheating on your test, I still thought you were hot. You were even better when I finally got to know you.” The wide smile was back on Jim’s face. “Playing chess with you is the _best_.”

Spock looked up at Bones, who had an extremely helpless expression on his face.

“Scotty says they almost have the transporter up and working. A few minutes more,” Bones informed Spock. His eyes were wide.

Spock looked back down at Jim, who was speaking again. “I’m so in love with you, Spock, and it sucks because I know you don’t love me back,” he said softly, his brows drawn low over his eyes.

“Jim,” Spock began, halting when he heard Jim suck in a shaky breath. At first he thought the captain was fighting back tears, but then he noticed the wide eyes and the shaking hands.

Jim’s world was spinning again, and it was also going hazy now that oxygen was refusing to flow as easily down his windpipe. “Spock,” he croaked. “I can’t breathe.”

Bones was crouched down next to him in a second. “Dammit!” After that, Jim found his focus narrowing to Spock’s hands and the urgent voices from the both of them. His throat and chest were on fire, and his face felt warm. A hypo was applied to his neck, but it didn’t seem to change anything. It was possible he was dying, but for some reason he was content with his fate. Spock knew how he felt, and that was what counted in the end.

“Jim, you must try to breathe slowly. Focus on my voice.” It wasn’t so hard to focus on the even voice of his first officer, though it seemed to be getting more and more urgent and made less and less sense. Why was Spock upset? Jim wanted to reassure him, but his body didn’t want to work, and he couldn’t seem to focus on Spock’s face.

His world tilted again, and he slowly realized he was being held bridal style, and he rested his head against the warm chest he was clutched to. There was another shift, and suddenly the lights around them were bright and painful against Jim’s closed eyelids.

They were back on the _Enterprise,_ and the world around them exploded into motion. He was being carried somewhere, and then he was laid out on a flat surface. He bemoaned the loss of the warm embrace, but he was too weak and confused to do anything about it.

The last thing he was aware of was a familiar voice speaking his name and telling him that he had to live.

-oOo-

The worst part of the whole situation, Jim reflected as he lay dejectedly in his bed, was that he remembered everything that had happened to him. He could remember each and every embarrassing confession he had made to Spock, and he could still perfectly recall the barely-repressed look of surprise written across Spock’s usually stoic features.

One little misstep into a patch of innocent-looking flowers, and Jim had ruined everything. Now there seemed to be little hope of retaining the easy friendship he had held with his first officer, and Jim was terrified that he had also managed to sabotage their working relationship. His nerves clawed his insides as his mushy words of love were repeated again and again in his head.

When he had woken up in Sickbay, he had been alone with Bones, who was looking at him with relief and sympathy. When asked what he remembered, Jim had groaned and hid his face in his hands, mortification spreading through his body like flames through a dry corn field.

Bones had gripped his shoulder and then sent him to rest in his quarters for a full day so he could recuperate from both the pollen and the stresses associated with the whole mission. In other words, so he could pull his shit together before he had to go back to the bridge and work the same shift as Spock. Usually Jim disputed the doctor when it came to having to take time off from duty, but this time he went to his quarters without argument.

Jim was feeling restless, though, as he stared up at the pristine white ceiling of his sleeping alcove and allowed his mind to dwell on his failure to keep his desires from the one person he didn’t want to know. Jim knew that lying in bed was not helping his situation, so he hauled himself to his feet and pulled on a pair of boots over his rumpled pants. He was pretty sure he didn’t look so hot, but he wasn’t planning on doing anything important, anyway. The crew had all seen him looking much worse.

Jim wandered the halls of the ship until he found himself on the observation deck, the lights lowered and the stars gleaming invitingly through the window. This place was a like a magnet to him, especially during times of any emotional upheaval. The stars were like a swig of scotch, fine on the taste buds and soothing to the brain. Kirk was in love with his ship and in love with space, and he knew that there was no way he wouldn’t have ended up here at some point. The pull adventure and the universe had on him were too strong to fight.

Jim leaned his head against the cool glass and let out a shaky sigh. If only he could lose himself into the colors of the galaxy, let himself dissolve into stardust and give his pain away to the solar winds. The stars didn’t hold grudges and didn’t care who he was. The stars were there for him and always would be.

“Captain?”

The voice made him start, and he pulled his head off of the glass as he turned to face his first officer. “Hey, Spock,” he mumbled, running a nervous hand through his hair and wondering why fate treated him the way it did.

“Are you well?” Spock’s voice held a hint of concern as he strode and took his place next to Jim in front of the observation window. The starlight was playing on his skin and sparkled in his eyes, along with something like concern, and Jim had to look away.

“The effects of the pollen are completely cured, if that’s what you mean,” Kirk responded, his eyes out on the stars.

“That is only part of my concern,” Spock said, and Jim could still feel his gaze on the side of his face. “I also ask after your general wellbeing.”

“I feel fine, though I’m still feeling the aftermath embarrassment.” Jim chuckled nervously, glancing back at Spock and wondering why he was even bringing up the subject of his drugged behavior.

“Your embarrassment is unwarranted,” Spock returned calmly. “Your actions on Gamma Trianguli VI were not your own.”

“It was like a truth serum, Spock,” Jim said, apparently intent on making his situation worse. “And I can remember it all, which is totally worse than getting hammered.” Jim shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. It’s over with now, and nothing can be undone. So.”

“ _Kaiidith,_ ” Spock stated softly, his mouth curling elegantly around the Vulcan word. Jim knew just enough Vulcan to understand that Spock was agreeing with him. _What is, is._

“Look, I’m sorry you had to hear my mushy blabbering while I was all drugged. You can just ignore everything I said, okay? Just pretend nothing happened and we can move on exactly as we’ve been.”

“Captain.”

“I mean, I died once and you got all teary on me and we moved on from that. I can’t see why something like this should change our relationship.”

“Captain.”

“Who cares if I’ve been harboring feelings for you? I can control myself, believe it or not. I’ve actually known for a while how I feel about you, and you didn’t know until I told you, so I totally say I’ve got a handle on this.”

_“Jim.”_

Jim finally allowed his nervous prattling to peter out and really looked at Spock. Behind the slight exasperation that was written on his face there was something warm that made Jim’s heart leap. Before he could say anything more, though, Spock had stepped towards him and covered Jim’s mouth with his own, and his fingers were taken and twined with Spock’s long, thin ones.

Jim wasn’t certain he hadn’t been drugged again, because the swimming sensation in his head was strong, and the only thing he could even begin to think about were the soft lips on his own and the warm fingers tangled with his. Every point of contact he had with Spock was singing.

Spock kissed him with the same sort of dedication he had with every task he performed, and it was enough to make Jim weak at the knees. He was amazed by how gentle the kiss was and how a simple press of lips could be so important. Spock pulled back slightly; enough to look Jim in the eyes.

“It seems we both have been harboring feelings, and it is illogical to deny them any longer.” Spock’s voice had a rough edge to it that made Jim’s blood heat and added to Jim’s complete surprise at the turn of events. _Spock loved him back._ It was unreal.

Spock raised an eyebrow. “What must I do to solidify your trust in reality?” Spock asked, and Jim realized that the Vulcan probably had a read on his general emotions through the contact of their hands. Jim focused intently on his love for Spock and how much he wanted to make him lose his Vulcan control right here on the observation deck. Judging by the green that tinted Spock’s cheeks and the slight widening of his eyes, Jim had been successful.

The mouth that covered his was less gentle this time, and Jim gasped into the kiss at the scrape of teeth on is lower lip. Spock wrapped an arm around Jim’s waist and pulled them flush together, and _wow_ , Spock was warm. Jim buried a hand into Spock’s silky hair, brushing a pointed ear along the way, and was rewarded with a low growl in the back of Spock’s throat.

This version of Spock was _fascinating._

Spock pulled away again, his heavy breaths warm against Jim’s mouth. “If we do not relocate to a more private location soon, I cannot guarantee my controls will remain intact, and we do not need charges for sexual harassment if another crew member happens to pass by.”

The walk to Jim’s quarters was way too long, even as he pulled on Spock’s hand and tried distract himself with complicated math problems. It didn’t work very well, and as soon as the doors to his quarters closed behind him, they were on each other.

It felt so good, after the months and months of appreciation from afar, to finally be able to touch, and the reactions he was pulling out of Spock made it even better than he had imagined. Hearing the normally even, controlled voice gasp his name nearly drove Jim mad. The world had narrowed down to Spock and everywhere their bodies were touching, and Jim was determined to make sure that the surface area of contact was as great as possible. Jim wanted to get to Spock’s skin; he wanted to map it like they mapped the stars.

By the time they hit the bed together, there wasn’t a scrap of clothing between either of them and they both moaned at the friction of their bodies aligning perfectly. Spock’s weight on top of Jim was amazing, and his hot mouth kissing down Jim’s neck drew another gasp out of Jim’s throat. Spock’s hands were everywhere, and it seemed that the Vulcan was just as determined to map Jim’s body as Jim was to learn his. They had spent too long dancing around each other, and it had built up this encounter until it seemed everything was on fire. Spock was _hot_ against him.

It took almost all of Jim’s concentration to reach into the top drawer of the nightstand next to his bed and press the small bottle into Spock’s hand, and through their contact Jim was able to feel the rush of lust that filled Spock at the realization of what the bottle meant.

Jim shouldn’t have been surprised that Spock made love to him just as intently and thoroughly as he did everything else, and having all of Spock’s attention on this primal act and on Jim was overwhelming. When Spock finally pushed into him, Jim was afraid his feelings would overflow and that maybe he wouldn’t survive this. After all, no man could endure this much feeling and this much happiness. Jim had no idea such a sense of _right_ could ever exist.

Jim could see galaxies in Spock’s eyes; he could see everything he loved about being out in space, could see the chance of discovery and the thrill of adventure. Jim could feel love and dedication and belonging. His body was a rush of sensation and it belonged to Spock, who was playing it like he did his lyre, coaxing melodies out of the perfectly-tuned strings. The final rush of ecstasy they reached together, and the stars that flew through Jim’s mind were just as beautiful as those he was drawn to outside the ship.

“I really do love you, Spock,” Jim said once he had regained some semblance of coherency. He was extremely blissed-out, and never wanted to move from how he was tangled with his Vulcan on the small regulation bed that was really meant for one.

Spock brushed a hand across Jim’s cheekbone and then over his rounded ear. His normally immaculate hair was mussed against the pillow, and Jim could see a green mark on his neck that Jim knew he had put there with his mouth. He was beautiful.

“I know, _ashayam_. As I love thee.” His eyes were the warmest chocolate Jim had ever seen, and he was content to lose himself in them. Though he had never heard that Vulcan word before, he understood the general meaning behind it and would ask later. Right now he was content on basking in this wonderful glow and the feeling of Spock’s love leaking through the immense amount of contact they shared.

Jim was more at home than he had ever been.

 

-oOo-

“You two are way too smug, and it can’t be about anything good,” Bones grumbled as he set his tray down heavily on the table across from them, and his gaze ping-ponged between Jim and Spock.

Jim smiled as he took his spot next to Spock and allowed their arms to brush briefly. He sort of felt bad for Bones, but he was too happy with his new situation with Spock to care that much. Besides, he had an upper hand here and planned to poke at Bones as much as he could.

“You must not like it when I’m happy, then,” Jim said with a small pout. “What is it with you and disliking fun?”

“I don’t dislike fun, I dislike bodily injury and emotional pain, both of which seem to happen quite a bit when you’re _happy_ about something.”

“Doctor, you are overgeneralizing the Captain’s emotional tendencies,” Spock broke in, and Jim could sense a slight defensiveness in his tone that made a small grin spread on Jim’s face.

“He’s an adrenaline junkie, and you know it. And I don’t even want to know what could possibly make _you_ happy, Spock.”

“Hey now, no reason to go picking on the Vulcan,” Jim shot back, but he couldn’t keep the humor out of his tone. “Spock can be happy if he wants to.”

Suddenly McCoy’s eyes went wide and the hand that held a forkful of salad he had held up to his mouth dropped back down to his plate. “Oh sweet mother of Mary, you two didn’t.” Jim liked how the doctor’s southern drawl was more pronounced when he was distressed. Jim had to give him credit for picking up on their vibes almost immediately. He had to wonder if they were really that obvious, considering one of them was a Vulcan.

“You will have to be more specific, Doctor,” Spock replied calmly, and Jim had to give him credit for how smooth his voice was, while Jim was just barely holding back a full-blown laugh.

Jim’s fingers brushed Spock’s as he reached for his drink, and Bones’ gaze was drawn to it immediately.

“You did, didn’t you!” he exclaimed with a tight voice. “Oh, good heavens, I need a brandy.” He ran a hand over his face and leaned back in his chair. “We are all doomed.”

Spock tilted his head and Jim found yet another thing he found totally endearing about his first officer. 

“I do not see why you are in such emotional upheaval about what is a personal matter between the Captain and me.”

Bones seemed to calm slightly. “Well, you two already acted like you were married before any of this, so I suppose nothing much is going to change. Although the mental imagery really makes me wish brain bleach was a thing that exists.”

“Ew, Bones, you’re more of a pervert than I thought,” Jim said with a chuckle as he took a bite of his replicated pasta and attempted to steal a piece of fruit off of Spock’s tray. Spock smacked his hand away, and Jim met his gaze and saw humor dancing there. He stopped leaning closer when he remembered they were not alone at the table.

Bones was looking a little sick when Jim glanced back at him, and he did feel just the slightest bit guilty.

“Lord, give me strength,” he muttered, staring at the ceiling of the mess hall. Jim was very familiar with the long-suffering look that was plastered on the doctor’s face. He was familiar enough with it to know that underneath it all was fondness, and the grin he caught on McCoy’s face as he tried to hide it behind his drink told him that Bones was content with the turn of events.

“Just please, you two, I really don’t want to see any first-hand examples of this new relationship with my own eyes, okay? I’m a doctor, not a teenage girl.”

Spock seemed contemplative as he twirled his fork in his hand, and it was a few minutes after McCoy’s outburst that he spoke. “I believe we have a patch of flowers to thank, Captain,” he concluded.

“What? Why?”

Spock glanced at him, and the corners of his mouth were pulled up slightly in his version of a smile that made Jim’s heart flutter. “I do not believe we would be at this point in our relationship now had you not stepped into that patch of flowers on Gamma Trianguli VI and been forced to speak your feelings aloud.”

Jim gaped.

“Neither of us would have been brave enough to come forward with our feelings, and it could have been months longer until we finally realized that they were mutual.”

Jim laughed. “You’re right, Spock!” He shook his head and held out his cup in a toast. “To those strange flowers that pushed us together.”

Spock and Bones also lifted their drinks.

“To clueless idiots falling in love,” Bones added gruffly, and Jim laughed as they clinked their plastic cups together and drank.

 Jim felt Spock press his leg against his under the table and thought that maybe, for once, everything was right in his world.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!


End file.
